This is The Best Thai & Japanese Restaurant I visit when I'm in the Edgewater Neighborhood. Everything is so Fresh!! Really nothing but enjoyable experience here. Yesterday, Monday about 1pm I was craving Sushi and I was in the area so I called to place the order. Hubs ordered the Indie Duo Don (Salmon & Tuna) His favorite! I had the V- Temp (Sweet Potato & Asparagus) I don't know what they do but it taste so crunchy and light. Also ordered the Fire Komodo Maki (soft Shell crab, cream cheese, cucumber topped with broiled eel) Everything just taste so good together. Last and not least I also had the Santa Fe Maki (shrimp Tempura, cucumber, lettuce, spicy mayo & Avocado) Perfect for a 1 bite! Seriously, Recommend to try this place if your in the Edgewater area. read more

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If you like crab Rangoon in theory but hate crab Rangoon almost everywhere you get it, Indie Cafe is the place for you! There is almost no point in trying to get crab Rangoon anywhere else. It's fresh with a thin, crispy wonton wrapper. Not the big, doughy stale-ish triangular slabs you get almost everywhere else. The steamed shrimp shumai is also delightful. But there's a fifty-fifty chance they will fry it even if you order it steamed. It's okay fried too. Solid Thai entree staples throughout their menu. Which is fine because even so-so pad Thai is pretty great, right? They also make some of the best sushi in Chicago. Didn't see that coming, did you? I haven't eaten inside a restaurant in over a year now, but I rarely did at Indie Cafe because their service was consistently bad. Really friendly, just not at all timely or attentive. But it's great for takeout. Really great! read more

Not great and not planning on ever eating here again unfortunately. Good: Sweet Potato Rangoon; Sashimi Hamachi Bad: Stir Fry Pad-see-ew (Chow-Fun) tasteless, noodles steamed sitting in water served separately, bizarre; Sushi Crocodile Roll looked nice but was dry and lacked flavor, soy sauce: too sweet, sangria (pretty bad), service: really slow and couldn't get it For $100+ for 2 people on a quite night, there are so many better options in the area. Pass read more

The bang bang shrimp here was the best I've ever had! It's a nice place to go on a date with someone, it is dimly lit with candles on your table and interesting artwork. The sever was attentive to us, and their hairjuku mojito is a must. read more

Indie Cafe - Bang bang shrimp - Sushi Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Absolute love this sushi place ! It's cute and but so big. We were seated right away. read more

Ordered here for NYE and I enjoyed my rolls! Here's the skinny: Excellent customer service when placing orders Decently priced rolls Loved the almond monkey roll-be sure to get it! Liked the Kauai roll- it's simple but different Liked the shrimp tempura roll-I mean anything fried is good! Period! Loved the seaweed salad Loved the coconut creme brûlée Didn't like: Lava cake. It just had a weird texture Oslo roll. Whatever you do, don't get it. Blah! Way more better rolls they have then this one. I would for sure order from them again and try other stuff on the menu! read more

Food was great. Service (waiter) not so because I decided to eat in. The cooks were great; the waiter on Thursday, 03/07/24- would not even look at me or offer a glass of water (the cook did it). Very rude tone when saying -next time make sure you say dine in (I am their frequent customer). Would not go back. Warm and pleasant with certain customers. Completely ignoring others (got for my basics:water and napkins)- no thank you or anything. read more

Consistently good food and good service! We've been coming to Indie Cafe for many years and we enjoy both the sushi and the Thai menus

I've increased my rating bc I started ordering sushi delivery from here and it made up for the salty poor dine in experience. *****The almond monkey and white scorpion are amazing signature rolls.*****I have ordered these more than once*** Sex on the moon was described by my peers as tasting like cat food smells. I concur. Sex is something you want more of.... maybe on the moon it's different? read more

Indie Cafe - Jade Buddha. AKA SALT BOMB - Sushi Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Mere words are totally inadequate to describe the freshness of the food and exotic ambience of Edgewater gem, The Indie Cafe. I highly recommend any of the curries offered, the shrimp shumai and the Chicago C R A Z Y hand roll and the magnificence of their magically sumptuous negi hamachi. GO. ENJOY. read more

Love this place. Affordable and tasty, with a super nice ambiance inside. I love the noodles here.

This is actually a tough review to write, because I think Indie Cafe has some excellent food. But I have an issue with how they handled an unfortunate issue. We ordered delivery because our go-to Thai place is now closed on Mondays. We thought everything was great, as expected, until my partner had a strange texture in a big piece of potato. She looked at the other half of the piece in her bowl and saw a small worm poking out. She immediately spit the potato out (and thankfully hadn't swallowed). I contacted the restaurant and their first response was if we wanted a new order. Umm, no. We had no appetite after that. Then they eventually offered a refund, but only for the worm-y entree, which seemed really weird to me. And finally--and most peculiarly--they asked if they could send a driver to pick up the food so they could "determine the source" of the problem. Sure, but that's super weird. I had thrown out the food, on account of it having a worm in it, so I guess I can scrape it back into a container. I tried to rationalize there being a worm. Bugs and worms happen in veggies. I'd hate to penalize a restaurant for slimy things doing what slimy things do. But I had inspected the potato thoroughly, and the worm was inside a huge, blackened hole it had burrowed through it. Any line cook even half-assing it would have peeled the potato and seen that it should be tossed. This was an issue of insufficient preparation and then a strange response from the restaurant. Very unfortunate for a place that I very much liked. But I don't think you can ever talk yourself into ever returning to a restaurant once you get a worm in your mouth, no matter how good the food is. read more

Indie Cafe - Potato with a worm prize inside - Sushi Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Raw meat. No fork or spoon or sticks. Delivered ontime. Also there was no paper in delivery for clean up. read more

Indie Cafe - Raw meat. No spoon or fork or sticks. Also no papers - Sushi Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The last couple of times my boyfriend and I were here, the service was absolutely terrible. We were ignored and had to flag down the waiter to take our order, get our drinks, get the check... And this was on a weeknight when the restaurant was pretty empty. While the food itself isn't bad, it's too expensive. Charging $19 for a bowl of rice is robbery. You can get similar quality food at Nori on Devon with much better service and at a better price! read more

Saw this spot while we were passing Broadway, and I'm glad we went in to try it! Love the decor and ambiance of the restaurant ( which I unfortunately forgot to take a photo of), but boy was the food delicious and filling! Appetizing presentation and overall satisfying service. read more

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Nice selection, good service and a welcoming atmosphere. Good prices also. I like their sushi. read more

The Almond Monkey and V-Tempura rolls were our favorite. We also had delicious hot tea. Great spot with a wide selection of menu items (ramen, poke, sushi, maki, soups, entrees) read more

Indie Cafe - a sushi platter with various types of sushi - Sushi Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

When we talk about sushi restaurants in the neighborhood, and there are many of them, this one we could ever complain about. Super nice staff and really nice quality sushi but not over the top or pretentious and we can always get a table. No complaints. read more

We came here for lunch to try their Thai food. Unfortunately, they didn't have drunken noodles for their lunch special, which was about the same price but you get a soup and an appetizer with it. No big deal. Still ordered my favorite drunken noodles. I did also order their chicken satay. Their chicken satay was very delicious. Perfectly cooked, and their peanut butter sauce was also very tasty. Usually when I've ordered drunken noodles, they've either came spicy or they ask you how spicy do I want it. She didn't ask me, nor did it come spicy. I had asked for some hot sauce to spice it up. She brought me 2 little sauce glass containers. An oil based one and then a powdered one. Their powdered chili definitely did its job. It was so spicy and the rest was history. A perfectly made drunken noodle dish. As far as the dish itself, it was all perfect. Noodles, vegetables, and beef. And finally a Thai place that serves sticky rice with mango. A nice way to end our lunch. Thank you. I will be returning soon. read more

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The service was horrible. The food was dry and the waitress refused to bring us more sauce for the tempura. She said we had had enough. We thought she was joking. Finally the waitress came back and I asked her about the sauce . She said the owner would get angry and besides she would have had to have charged us more. But she never gave us that option. I would have paid for it., even though that was not worth it. read more

The orange chicken was mostly bread. Like maybe 80% just breading and 20% small chicken pieces. The pad Thai isn't mixed so when it arrives all the protein is on the bottom (it is good though). The Japanese sausages are VERY good though. Same with the crab Rangoon. read more

I'll start by saying we truly loved the place. We had been going for years , countless times without any areas of concern.... but as of late Indie Cafe has been failing us- on everything from "fishy" sushi to poor service but our recent visit, took the cake. We ordered crab Rangoon... when they came to the table- I bit into one; they were not hot. I asked for new ones, a few moments later our server returned with the same ones: that had been refried. (I know they were because I had stuck my fork in each of previous ones to confirm they were not hot as well as the one I had taken a bite of) Absolutely disgusting not to mention prob. against some health code. read more

Indie Cafe - Sushi Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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I've officially given this place enough tries. The sushi is bland and the service is poor. We had three people sort of wait on us, neither of which communicated with each other. Food took forever to come out, and when it did, it wasn't worth the wait. It was very bland. To top it off, their internet connection was lost, so they had no way to take our credit card. We ended up having to leave credit card number, name, and address, which makes me really uncomfortable considering that identity theft isn't a very rare occurrence. Never again! read more

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We usually order take out. Great variety with consistent my high quality. We order regularly from indie Cafe.

Ten years I've lived in the neighborhood and keep giving this place another try. If the order isn't wrong, then the food is okay. Not great, but fine. Tonight was the last time though. I walked in around 9:10 pm and asked the hostess to sit inside. She rolled her eyes and said that the kitchen closed in 15-20 min. I said that's fine and she got increasingly agitated. She asked where I wanted to sit and I repeated that I'd like to sit inside and next to the window. She threw up her arms and said, "Fine! Whatever!" as she walked away. I asked her if there was a problem and without turning to face me said, "NO!". With that I decided to spend my money elsewhere. While I am pleased to see neighborhood businesses thrive in these difficult times, I will be looking elsewhere for my Thai and sushi. read more

The lunch specials are great ! Food is good , portions are decent , the service is my only concern . Around 1:30 2:30 there is only one server and she seems to be stressed out, busy and with bad humor read more

After going here over and over again since my review 2 years ago this place has turned into an absolute powerhouse and deserves a perfect score...There isn't a bad thing on this menu....Just try the curry pot roast or Ramen pot roast and tell me this isn't one of the most delicious Asian dishes being served in Chicago...Ive had Ramen from just about every spot in Chicago including Monster...This is my fav read more

Alway delicious! A quality place to go for dining in or takeout. The vegetable maki and veggie ramen are delicious- perfect option for vegans/vegetarians. read more

Good quality sushi. Delivery is always on time or early and arrives warm! Great noodle and rice dishes. Great experience dining in and take out! read more

Food is great, nice portions, customer service is ok, nice variety of interesting dish, like traveling to an Indian country.

I was really excited to try this place especially after hearing good things about it from other people and seeing such great Yelp reviews. I came with some friends for an early dinner. I got the seafood udon which was tasty and was a very good portion. I tried my friend's which I think was pad see ewe which was actually more fragrant and had more depth of flavor than mine. I was really craving tempura and saw some other people have some delicious looking vegetable tempura so I decided to order it. This was the most disappointing dish of the night and was what made my experience 3 stars vs 4 stars. Typically, tempura is known to be a very light and airy breading that should feel fluffy. The shrimp tempura was the complete opposite (please see my pictures). While the presentation was nice and the flavor was ok, I think this dish is better labeled as shrimp corn dog because that's how thick and heavy the coating was. This is a different style of preparation than the vegetable tempura that I saw other tables receive. I warn those who are used to traditional shrimp tempura that you will not get that here. Based on the Thai dishes alone, I might be back but I would love if they could make/offer a more traditional shrimp tempura. read more

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Overall great food, be weary if Polly is your server/hostess. On multiple occasions she has been nothing but rude and short with us when taking my order. The rest of the staff do an outstanding job however polly is very unprofessional and ruins my experience. read more

I have been going to Indie for years now, and it has stayed in my top restaurant choices all this time. The food is impeccable! Many different choices for many different people. Pretty much whoever you are, you will find something to order and enjoy! The ambiance along with aesthetic is beautiful, calm and serene. Perfect mood lighting no matter what time of day. There is outdoor seating that is always wonderful as well. I have tried many, many things on the menu and everytime the food has been amazing. My personal favorites are the Pad Thai, the Tuna Pistachio Poke Bowl, Chicken Satay, and Teriyaki Chicken. The food is very filling and delectable. Everytime, the service is very nice. Everyone there is very patient, attentive, helpful, and just flat out nice. They will happily answer any questions you have about the food, along with give you menu recommendations! I truly recommend this place if you want to stop and have a nice meal with great ambiance. read more

Ordered take out from Indie tonight and it was the first time we tried them. The food was absolutely amazing. We had the curry and ramen which was extremely flavorful and fresh. All of the sauces and appetizers were really wonderful as well. We had one hiccup where we got the wrong protein with one of the dishes, but the moment we called, it wasn't even a question. They rushed out a replacement at no charge immediately. We will definitely be ordering again and recommending to our friends as well. read more

Thai food is my absolute favorite, so I acknowledge my standards for the cuisine are pretty high. But this is the worst I've had in Chicago. I don't know how this place has such rave reviews. I had been to Indie Cafe some time ago. I remember not caring for it, but I couldn't remember why. Fast forward to dinner with a friend tonight. The place was packed. Very noisy (we could barely hear each other across the table), but a lively atmosphere. We ordered steamed chicken dumplings, 2 sushi rolls (Kauai and Santafe) and the beef pad Thai. Dumplings: They were fine. Nothing special, and nothing to rave about. Kauai (smoked salmon, mango, avocado): This. Was. AWFUL!!! The salmon was soooo fishy. I wanted to spit it out and at one point gagged. My friend thought I was joking...until he realized I was not. The mango was not soft. Instead, it was cut into long sticks, and very hard (unripe). I was ready to send it back. My friend decided they would trek though it and finish it. Santafe: Subpar at best. It didn't taste very fresh. Beef pad Thai: Soggy noodles sitting in way too much sauce, the beef was like the roast beef you make in the crock pot...except flavorless. Worst pad Thai I've ever had. I found myself looking around fathomed that people were enjoying their food. Then I felt bad for them, as it couldn't be possible they've had better. :( read more

Indie Cafe - This was the Pad Thai. Notice all of the sauce sitting in the bottom of the bowl. - Sushi Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Appetizers are great. Beverage selection and pricing very reasonable. Unfortunately, the entrées are not at the same level. The kitchen has been below par in that area even before the shut down. I tried again one more time ... but except for appetizers and drinks, I will not be returning. read more

I read about some great reviews on this restaurant, so thought I'd check it out with some friends. The atmosphere was Hippester like, very contemporary. Food took a long time to come to our table, our waitress was very sweet. When the food did come-out I thought it wasn't bad. However, the portions were small, and the sushi although, presented very well, wasn't outstanding to us. We had the Pad See Ew with beef, panang currie with Chicken, one spider roll, and one Chicago roll. The food wasn't bad but it could've been better in my opinion. It is not a place I would brag about to my friends, however I wouldn't cross if off my list as a hot spot to dine out and have a good time. I did like their Thai Ice Tea. I felt their prices were about right. read more

Indie Cafe - spider roll - Sushi Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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We love to visit Indie Cafe. our family and family friends from Thailand missed Thai and Japanese food, Indie Cafe is the place to go. The Thai dishes are real local taste but not too spicy. Many sushi choices are fresh and in a fancy decorative style. The staffs are very friendly and good services. Very reasonable prices. When weather permits, sometime we like to sit outside enjoy nice Chicago weather.We visited Indie Cafe many times during our short visit. We definitely come back again anytime we come to Chicago. Great job, Indie Cafe. read more

I want to like this place but it has a few problems we experienced over dinner. We had a party of six on a recent weeknight. Seated inside not on sidewalk cafe. Which looked nice but loud w/ Broadway traffic. As the sun came down the lights stayed low. Not a big deal but you need the phone flashlight. Water came. Big menu options. Sushi, Thai. Curries. We had a few appetizers. The broccoli gomae, veggie egg roll, spring roll, veggie tempura, chive dumpling were ok. We ordered dinner. Sushi maki roll came out kinda quickly. Then each diner had their meal brought out in a sequence time lapse. Kinda like the chef made one at a time. The kitchen spacing was weird. Made for uneven night. Not busy at the time. So it was not a good experience made worse when my ramen finally came out last after everyone was eating and it was the wrong order I requested. It was not that good either. The whole pre boiled egg was cold sitting in an ok broth. I don't feel the mgt cared. No one asked us how we liked our meals or wanted to come by and say "we're sorry your food is not coming out right away". Just staff socializing and hitting their social channels near bar. read more

Was craving sushi and this place is very close to my house, I've always said I'll go in one day and yesterday was the day.... the interior is really cool with a funky glare to the decor.... the service was great and the food was delicious! I had the almond monkey, a bit spicy but really good! I will be going back. read more

Indie Cafe - Almond Monkey - Sushi Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois